


I, Nyarlathotep

by Petrochoria



Series: Miskatonic Mayhem [1]
Category: Cthulhu Mythos - H. P. Lovecraft, Original Work
Genre: Alien Biology, Alien Cultural Differences, Bedtime Stories, Demigods, Father-Daughter Relationship, Multi, human-like gods, nyarla is a mess but he loves his baby girl, potentially inaccurate astronomy, quick drabble for a comic I'm scripting, tw: mentions of child death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-26
Updated: 2019-04-26
Packaged: 2020-02-04 17:18:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18609025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Petrochoria/pseuds/Petrochoria
Summary: Nyarlathotep tells his beloved daughter a story.An homage to Neil Gaiman's 'I, Cthulu'.





	I, Nyarlathotep

The universe began with me, you know.

Mother--or father, whatever Azathoth may be (we siblings did have our preferences)-- fell asleep after the strains of laboring a litter of young gods (perfectly understandable, of course). And I was the youngest. From the womb into a newborn universe. 

There were a great many of us back then. We outnumbered the stars. But it fell to us to divvy out the cosmos. And we silently understood that it must be built on spilt blood.

I tore. I bit. In some instances, I ate. It went on for millennia… I believe I may have caused your ‘Big Bang’ in the process.

In the end, there stood only three of us, matched in power. The Unnamed Darkness, stretching across the universe, tying the celestial knots to form nebulae, where stars could be born safely. The Nameless Mist, only goddess (by your human terms, of course) among us, calming the inhabitants of the newborn galaxies, keeping a watchful eye over them. And, of course, I, the soul, passing notes between us like children in a schoolyard. Peace, Chaos, and Balance. A trinity, if you will.

It was a time of pure bliss. The tides of evolving planets, the rise and fall of species, supernovae… a beautiful symphony of a warless sort of chaos. But nothing can last forever.

There were other dimensions. Other trinities and pantheons. And by and by, they discovered our own corner of the universe.

We sheltered refugees, their tales of distant wars opening our eyes to the fact that our utopia would not remain that way. Hastur, Cthulu’s species (loathe as he is to admit it), the Mi-Go and the race of Yith...they all came to us in this way. 

And one eventually wormed his way over to my sister with sweetened words and lies, then left her with a litter.

He tasted unfortunately gamey, once I had tracked him down.

But...something came out of that incident, for better or worse. Said something was the one you once called father, Parker. 

Well, I expect you know the rest. He grew up, established our court, demoted me into an errand boy, took a wife from a foreign galaxy (a then-naive girl who thought love at first sight still existed). But this isn’t Yog-Sothoth’s story now, is it, Parker?

No...it’s time for the biggest mistake of my life. 

It was a cool, windy day on one of the outer planets. Beautiful country, by the way. I ought to take you there, one day. I’d been spending the day seeing how much pressure a treelike plant could take before it exploded (not my most sophisticated experiment) and I’d grown bored.

I was approaching a meadow, full of tall grass and small, hidden pools. And I saw her. Eyes greener than the seas of Kir’el, soft, doelike ears, bark-brown hair falling to her knees… she was such a beauty.

I learned a few millennia later that looks were deceiving. 

She introduced herself as Yhoundeh. Simply Yhoundeh. 

We toppled empires. We conquered together. 

She could rock the ‘blood of my enemies’ look. Just so you know.

But… despite her looks, there were...so many things I could not overlook. The casual threats. The nights I wished I was anyone else in the universe. Or nonexistent.

Eventually, I booked it to Earth. It was my nephew’s backwater planet, nothing more. At least, it was then.

There, I found my home. 

Egypt. Hot, dry… nothing like the waterworlds and ice giants we lived on. 

I loved it. Perhaps too much. But the gods there… my goodness, I adored Set. And Sekhmet made a mean Bloody Mary.

And Egypt gave me my name. I told them my truth, or a version of it-how I was a brother to Peace and Balance, and my name, Nei’ar’lyeht. Soul.

They made it something more. Nyarlathotep. Soul of Peace.

But Yhoundeh came for me once more, as she always did, with false promises of never harming me again. And I fell for them.

I’m a god of chaos, not a god of wisdom.

As the years wore on, I became a shadow of myself. I’d given her everything-my life, my love, my power, my dignity. 

So, I reasoned with myself, there was simply one thing I had left to give her.

An heir.

...It was twelve long months of agony. Of blood. Of barely being able to eat. Of beseeching Azathoth to give me this one final chance, this last hope.

I almost fell into that aeons-long sleep as my parent did, after giving Yhoundeh her heir. There were others.

Were. Only one could survive me, apparently.

He was so small then, Parker. Small and blushy-cheeked and curious-eyed. Ugga-Naach--your brother, he of insatiable energy.

You would’ve loved him so. Bright little thing, picking up runes almost as quickly as I.

And then he sickened. 

And died.

We know whose fault that was.

We know what happened that night.

...I wish I could rip her throat out here and now.

Ahem...thank you for the hug. But...it isn’t necessary.

I’m fine.

Really.

I ruled over Egypt, for a while. And then, onto Kadath. My beautiful tyranny. And...eventually, into the world beyond.

They had all stood aside, even those yet unborn, in my eyes. In my eyes...they were all responsible.

I was the scourge of their cities. They tried to stop me, and I burned them to the ground.

I became the thing of their nightmares.

And then I met an insolent human. Bespectacled, bookish, but fiery. Somehow, he calmed my wrath. 

I was as blind as Azathoth for thinking a lover could save me.

He and I still speak--or else we wouldn’t be sitting here right now. We’re amicable, to a point. But...nothing will be the same.

You remind me of him, you know. Probably in the freckles. Or the unfortunate height.

Ah, there it is. The glare of death. I tremble before it.

So, I left Kadath, and eventually the Dreamlands altogether. And I knew something had changed in me. Or else Yog wouldn’t have caught me drinking a few choice concoctions.

He chalked it up to “Nyarlathotep being Nyarlathotep.”

… and then, you and Maddie came along. Whether I liked it or not...you were determined to live.

My second near-death by child. But fair is fair, eh?

...that was a joke, little one. Perhaps it’s best not to talk of morbidity at such an hour. You need your strength in foreign lands.

...What do you mean?

What do you mean to me? 

… I’ll admit it. You were a blunder. And for a while...I was angry. With myself, not with you. 

Well, maybe a little with you. But...it was less you personally. It was more...the idea, of having a reason not to destroy this miserable realm. A twinge in my mind. I was angry at the world, Parker. The entire cosmos, spanning across the dimensions, for letting me come to this.

And then I truly met you. On a chance visit to Earth with Shub. I’d been intending to burn down Seattle, if I were to be honest.

And there you and your sister were. My two astounding mishaps. One with the heart of an angel, and the other with the will and fire of a demon. 

And...well, I may have realized that the reason not to destroy it all was a good reason. Maybe I even appreciated it. But those are unconfirmed reports.

But that’s all in the past. What do you mean to me now?

...you took astronomy, didn’t you? You learned about dark energy, how it defies all laws of physics and forces the universe to do its bidding.

And you learned about its opposite. Dark matter. The one that holds the universe together, through thick and thin.

I am the epitome of the dark energy, no? But you-and your sister, yes- you’re what’s holding me together. And...when I saw you wearing the crown of a queen, walking alongside them...you hold so much more together.

In a way, our...dear gods, our family...we’re our own little universe.

...I love you too.

Ahem. Goodnight, seba.

...Exuent Nyarlathotep.

Yes, Parker, I’m damned sure I’m allowed to narrate what I do!

As I said...good night, sleep tight, don’t let the unspeakable horror at the center of the universe devour you…

...keep holding fast, my warrior.

My hope.

**Author's Note:**

> This is a quick drabble I wrote for my eventual webcomic, 'Arkham Academy-' part college/high school comedy, part adventure, part sci-fi/fantasy, and part cosmic horror story, focusing on the daughter of (*coughNyarlathotepcough*) Yog-Sothoth, as she navigates a life of various farm animals, considerably less human siblings, a motley crew of paranormals with varying levels of sanity, a goddess hell-bent on destroying the fabric of reality, and of course, trying to avoid awkward family dinners with workaholic Uncle Cthulu, vodka aunt Idh-Yaa, and...Hastur in general.
> 
> Seba is an Egyptian word meaning "star."
> 
> Constructive criticism or comments are appreciated. Have a wonderful day! :)


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